TEC efforts ‘rocks’ on with monetary and equipment donation

As Total Education Center (TEC) executives continue their efforts of empowering and educating young adults in various industries in the technical field, one local company, Bahama Rock, remains committed in assisting the institution with its mandate. Pictured from left during a check and computer system donation are Rev. Lindy Russell, TEC; Lance Brown, Bahama Rock Project Manager and Fred Delancy, TEC.

As Total Education Center (TEC) executives continue their efforts of empowering and educating young adults in various industries in the technical field, one local company, Bahama Rock, remains committed in assisting the institution with its mandate.

Lance Brown, Project Manager at Bahama Rock said that in donating to the TEC, the company is giving back, in a positive way, to the community in which it operates.

Sharing that he had the opportunity to meet with both Fred Delancy, TEC’s President and Rev. Lindy Russell, he was impressed with their desire and continued dedication to empowering the youth of the nation.

“We understand what the Total Education Center is all about and what it means to the community, and we wanted to take a little part in it. We had the opportunity to meet these gentlemen earlier this summer, talking about their new location in Eight Mile Rock. It was nice to see the drive these gentlemen have, to make things better for the youth and young adults that are in their program.
“Some of them may not know the direction in which they want to go, through technical skills and otherwise, but they provide a place for them to go,” said Brown.

“As a sidebar, on a personal level, I know an individual that has participated in this program and has done very well. He told me a little bit about the program and what it would do for him.

“At the time, it sounded like one of those things that was too good to be true, but it was … it was true. In the time frame that he told me that he was going to receive his high school diploma and also some training, he did it. It was great to see,” Brown recalled.

“One of the things we wanted to do today was get together and give a modest monetary donation along with two computers. Also, we are going to donate three men, for eight hours a day to help with any projects that they may have.

“Sometimes it is all about having a little extra manpower, to help get a project to the next level. Hopefully, that will help with their Eight Mile Rock location, which I know they are diligently working on. These are good days when you give back, a little bit, and donate to the community, and to the betterment thereof.”

Questioned what he would say to others in corporate Grand Bahama – regarding following suit in such efforts – Brown responded, “I would say, take the time to get to know these men; meet with them and let them talk to you about what they have, what they do and the benefits.”

He added that even the small donations make a huge difference. “You donate a few computers and a small monetary donation, and they do wonders with it. On a corporate level, it does not have to be much, although I’m sure a huge donation will be great. But what they do with the donations that they have received is astounding.

“From what I see, they definitely have a plan and they follow the plan, and the outcome at the end of the plan, they achieve their goals. They have a lot of experience and a lot of leadership, and those are some of the skills that our youth need to have today.

“It is not something that they are going to gain from YouTube; this is something that they need to do, by meeting them and doing what they are asking them to do,” Brown said.

Delancy noted that he is committed to seeing a technical program transformation in Grand Bahama, as the island is known as the industrial capital of the country.

He said that the donation by Bahama Rock will, indeed, go a long way in assisting TEC in its efforts.

“With Grand Bahama, as they say, being the industrial capital of The Bahamas, that suggests that unemployment here should be very, very low. It should be the lowest in the country. On the contrary, it is not actually, we, which means that more of our people should be employed. This is not an indictment on the industrial companies, this is an indictment on us, as a country for not being able to prepare our people to become more marketable and take advantage of all of the opportunities here.
“There are numerous jobs here, but we watch, daily, as foreigners come into the country and take these jobs; we cannot blame the foreigners. I always tell my young people, it is not their fault they are seeking employment, it is our fault that we are not training ourselves to be able to take advantage of the opportunities which exist locally,” stated Delancy.

“We are about to revolutionize technical education, where thousands of young people will be exposed to technical and general education experiences to help them become responsible, productive, knowledgeable and confident members of our society,” he added.

The TEC president revealed that he intended to bring TEC to the residents of West Grand Bahama, so that they too can take advantage of the opportunities available at the institution.

However, due to a setback with the structure of their building things were put on hold. But with the help of persons in the community, work continues to have the center up and running in the not too distance future.

He noted that donations such as those made by Bahama Rock, assist the TEC program in insurmountable ways.

To Brown and the Bahama Rock team, Delancy said, “on behalf of TEC, I thank you and Bahama Rock for your contributions.”